Ultimately, emerging hosted services from the likes of MCI will help address the troublesome problem of remote site telephony without losing tight integration with the corporate VoIP architecture. When that happens, network architects will be able to tie the hosted VoIP services at the remote sites to the telephony services at the central office.
JUST THE PHONES
One of the best uses for VoIP is in supporting the smallest offices. A few phones can be located at any site without additional CPE. The phones register with a telephony server in the main site over a DSL or cable Internet connection, much as is done with consumer VoIP services such as Vonage.
Admittedly, a similar approach is possible in the TDM world, but it's expensive. Voice architects can tie remote phones back to the main PBX through Off Premises Extension (OPX) circuits provided by the carriers. Those circuits turn the remote phone into just another extension, but at a price. OPX circuits from BellSouth, for example, run $72 per month per location, plus $60.48 for the first mile between the locations and an additional $3.89 for each subsequent mile. It's little wonder that BellSouth now recommends users connect back over DSL.
By avoiding the cost of remote CPE, network architects can shave their per-user costs by hundreds of dollars. Here, SIP-based architectures such as that from Zultys have a big advantage. Today, most major networking vendors offer nominal SIP support, typically with proprietary extensions for advanced functions. The problem is that while third-party SIP phones may work with the telephony server, they'll either do so at reduced functionality, or require a server upgrade to get full SIP functionality.
Subsea cable alternatives can provide a level of comfort for those concerned about disruptions. Realistically, they will continue to play a small, but critical role in the short term.
Maintaining existing network infrastructures often incurs huge technical debt before newer technologies are adopted over time.
Amid ongoing regional uncertainties, telecom infrastructure in the Middle East has expand to include terrestrial low-latency network infrastructure, which offers resilience and agility in navigating political complexities without relying solely on undersea networks.
